Owl is ready for bed.
But as soon as he settles in, he hears a strange noise. He'll never get
to sleep unless he can figure out what's going on! He looks
everywhere-in his cupboard, underneath the floorboards-even in his
walls. But while he's busy tearing his house apart, he doesn't notice
one tiny, squeaky, mouse-shaped detail. . . . Will Owl ever get a good
night's sleep?

I love Greg Pizzoli's books. Good Night Owl is both charming and silly; it reminds me of books that have stayed with me for years, like Frank Asch's Popcorn. Readers will love finding the source of the squeak in each spread!

From Good Night Owl (2016)

Hammer and Nails

Written by Josh Bledsoe; Illustrated by Jessica WarrickAges 5-7, Available Now

Darcy has plans. She and
her friend are going to play dress up, do each other’s hair, and polish
their nails. Daddy has plans, too. He’s going to read the paper, mow
the lawn, and fix the fence. When Darcy’s friend cancels and she’s sure
her day is ruined, Daddy suggests that they tackle their to-do lists
together with a Darcy-Daddy Day. Daddy dons a tutu, and Darcy gives him a
fancy hair do. They groom the lawn with Her Majesty’s Mowing Service
and face off in a Daddy-directed sock battle. But will Darcy want to
hammer? Will Daddy do nails? Stepping outside their comfort zones, Darcy
and Daddy opt to be open-minded and even a bit daring. As Daddy says,
“Sometimes things you’ve never done end up being fun!” With a gung-ho
attitude, Darcy masters the hammer, and Daddy goes for it with the
nails.

Hammer and Nails is an incredibly sweet story about a daughter who spends the day with her father. The little girl, Darcy, is thinks her day is ruined after her friend cancels, but it turns out a day with dad can be just as fun. Loved it!

Safe in a Storm

Written by Stephen R. Swinburne; Illustrated by Jennifer A. BellAges 3-5, Available Now

In
this comforting read-aloud story, all the animals find cozy places to
keep them safe and warm, no matter how loud the storm rumbles or how
dark the night gets. Next to their mothers, the baby animals are able to
let go of their fears and fall asleep despite the storm.

Safe in a Storm
is a fun, imaginative good-night story featuring loving animal
characters. It'll comfort young children during scary storms and always.

While the premise of this story has been done thousands of times, Safe in a Storm stayed with me. Perhaps it was the color palette or the gentle rhyming text... either way, this is a great pick for quiet bedtime reading.

Meet Homer, a dog who
heads to camp to live like a wolf! Here’s the perfect book for the
legions of kids out there who love dogs and funny books.

Homer is a dog . . . but he also secretly fancies himself part wolf. So
when an invitation to attend WOLF CAMP (“Where every dog can live as a
wolf for a week”) falls out of his kibble bag one morning, he’s
determined to go. After his people finally agree, Homer boards the bus
bound for Wolf Camp, along with fellow campers Trixie and Rex. They’re
greeted on the other end by wolf counselors Fang and Grrr (“they seem
nice”), and what follows is an array of wolf activities, including
learning to howl, mark, and hunt. Of course, Homer’s a little homesick
at times, and the food isn’t very good, but that just makes heading home
all the sweeter.

Perfect for all those kids anticipating
camp themselves, Zuill’s debut introduces a charmer of a dog and puts
him in some laugh-out-loud scenarios.

Homer is in for a summer of new experiences when he heads off to Wolf Camp. Excited, then hesitant about how different things are at camp, Homer bonds with his new pack, tried new things, and, in the end, finds returning home bittersweet.

A silly, fun version of the game "telephone"—in which a grocery list committed to memory goes playfully awry.One
day, Vincent's mother asks him to go to the store to pick up a few
items: "a bunch of carrots, a box of rice, some China tea, a big, firm
pear, and a tin of peas" to be precise. "And hurry home in time for
tea!" she says. Sounds easy enough.

Yet distractions are at every
turn, causing havoc with Vincent's memory. All of a sudden, a tin of
peas is replaced by a trapeze; a big, firm pear becomes a big furry
bear; and a box of rice transforms into a box of mice!

Needless to say, Vincent's mother is in for quite a surprise.

Told
with a playful rhythm for reading aloud and illustrated with exuberance
and great child appeal, this humorous picture book will have kids
laughing and asking for repeated readings.

Readers will love how the boy's list gradually becomes sillier and sillier. My favorite aspect of this picture book is the colorful, kinetic illustrations.

___________________________________________

Love any of the books featured this week? Let me know in the comments!